Outgoing ALA president Leslie Burger announced a new presidential task force this summer to synthesize the ongoing efforts by ALA to advance LIS education (I am choosing my words carefully here). Its workings are somewhat mysterious but presumably we will be told more when it reports next year. It’s membership includes former presidents Michael Gorman, Leslie Burger herself, and Carla Hayden (as chair), but it lacks the present president, Loriene Roy, which is most unfortunate since she alone among these is a tenured faculty member currently working in LIS education.
Of course, like everyone, I want to see improved standards of education but unlike some, I don’t actually believe that rewording the existing standards is the way to go when there are so many other problems that need fixing first. The language used in the former ALA-president’s April 2007 column in American Libraries makes me worry about how this committee views education and libraries. Its traditionalist tone implies more prescription of education by outside constituencies and a narrowing of perspective that could drive quality out of our programs. Of course I could be wrong. Maybe they will take a hard line on the diploma mills. Maybe they will argue for LIS extending beyond narrow interpretations of librarianship. Maybe the committee will recommend that accreditation actually does more than ask people to swear allegiance to libraries and to complete endless self-assessments. Maybe they will use data to inform their opinions. Maybe they will actually listen to the schools and not confuse education with adherence to canon. Let’s see. But it’s been a long time since ALA was led by an academic. What a pity the opportunity provided by this rare co-occurence of leadership bridging the profession and the academy was not seized for the benefit of both.
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